Has "Tipping" Culture Gone Too Far?

Chris dives into the rising trend of "tip fatigue" as Americans push back against soaring menu prices and constant tip prompts. From unexpected tip requests for minimal service to multiple tipping lines at restaurants, Markowski breaks down why tipping has hit a six-year low. Drawing on his years in the service industry, he offers insights on how businesses and employees can regain customer trust. www.watchdogonwallstreet.com

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Watchdog on Wall Street podcast explaining the news coming
out of the complex worlds of finance, economics, and politics
and the impact it will have on everyday Americans. Author,
investment banker, consumer advocate, analyst, and trader Chris Markowski.

Speaker 2 (00:16):
Tip fatigue. Yeah, it's in fact in the country. Here's
a story. Americans are tipping less than they have in years.
They say, frustration with rising menu prices and ubiquitous tip
prompts lead to a six year low. Yeah, average tip

(00:37):
and full service restaurants dropped to nineteen point three percent
for three months. Okay, I hate to say it, but
you did it to yourselves. You did it to yourselves. Yeah.
I'm someone that has spent a long, many, many many
years working in the service industry, bartending, waiting tables, and

(00:59):
I consider my myself a pretty good tipper. But stop
insulting us, which please, I'm I'm mind it on my
own business. Sarah, I need to go get myself a
bottle of water. I'm at the University of North Carolina
my son's lacrosse game, and I go to get myself
a bottle of water, buy myself, pull it out of

(01:21):
the cooler college kid just sitting there really doing nothing,
you know, on the phone. I go to pay for this,
no cash involved, and it prompted me for a tip.
Are you kidding me? I'm gonna tip this kid that

(01:44):
that's sitting there. Another example, and again this is new
to me, restaurant I went to receive a very good
restaurant had two lines for tips. I had a line
for tips for the wait staff and also tips for
the kitchen staff. But what did I do? I knew

(02:05):
what I was going to tip, and I divvied up.
I divvied it up. So you know, I'm supposed to
go to a restaurant and I'm supposed to you know what,
am I supposed to have forty percent?

Speaker 1 (02:17):
What?

Speaker 2 (02:19):
Yeah? Another thing is is that when they automatically include
the gratuity or they reserve the right to have a
tip when as a party of x or more, let
me tell you what I used to do. We used
to have that at the restaurant. I was a party
or six or more. It's time we could rape. We
could put eighteen percent on the check. I never did that. Never.

(02:44):
I always bet on myself. I always said, hey, I'm
not going to add a tip on here. The service
that I gave is gonna be so damn good they're
going to want to tip me. And this is obviously
decades ago, a lot more than eighteen percent, And quite frankly,
that's just how I did it. Choices you have to make.
And yeah, people are getting sick and tired of crap,

(03:06):
nonsensical fees that you're putting on the bill for health services,
whatever it may be. What did you think was going
to happen? You know, at some point in time, we've
got to make some semblance out of this. One more thing. Okay,
so little tip to you people at the restaurant business.
Your tips are down. When you hand somebody the little

(03:28):
you know toast med think that's what the point of
sale companies. You come to the table with a little
computer and you hand it over to them and you
turn your back. This is a new thing because a
person signing for it right there. The default setting for
a tip shouldn't be thirty percent, shouldn't be twenty five percent,
shouldn't be set anywhere, shouldn't be set anywhere. You should

(03:54):
have let us decide based upon your service. Little tip,
Little tip tips watchdog on Wall Street dot Com